Group Rules
The Group Rules, are not connected with the Star Trek Universe. Like all groups, rules must be established to maintain fluidity and order. Some of these are repeated in their outlined form on the group site itself found in Files: Administration: Group Rules. Basic Rules Have Respect Unless you respect the other players do not expect to be treated fairly. Often, differing personalities can result in conflicts. Try to work them out with an open mind and civility. Most of the time any disagreements are spurred from misunderstandings. However, if you cannot clear it up between the offended parties, please consult a moderator. Be Realistic It is easy to let your imagination get away from you hoping for some good drama, but you need to remember there are consequences. If you have a character who is AWOL or disrespects an officer they will be reprimanded. If you have character who breaks the law and is caught, they will face charges. If you have a character who is injured, try to play them according to species adaptability. Ignorance to consequences can often lead your character down a path you did not intend - plan ahead. Rate Sexual Content Because this group has occasionally explicit material you must be over eighteen to become an author; however, not all adults are interested in sexual scenarios or erotica. ST_Deep_Space_9 protects everyone by clearly labeling posts with sexual or graphic content (such as torture). If an author forgets to label a post, it is essential they create an warning post on the OCC group. Posts are rated as follows: NC-17: Any and all posts where penetration (hetero or homosexual) is described. Sexual Content: Any post with sexuality that does not include penetration (foreplay, oral, heavy petting etc) Disturbing Content: Taboo material that may be particularly disturbing to some readers (torture, rape, incest etc.) Edit Your Posts When posting, one of you must decide who will post it. Every post needs to be edited to ensure that it is as clear as possible - with correct spelling and/or grammar. Editing is usually done by removing the alerts between paragraphs to indicate ones turn is over. Authors names are left at the beginning of each post to help establish flow and remind readers who is speaking. Different speaking characters must be spaced into different paragraphs. No God Moding Creating a character who is too powerful or perfect is unacceptable. Every great pro needs an equally powerful con. Having a Q-like character is not permitted for new members. Also, new members are limited to Lt. Commander or lower ranks until they can become more established. Please be careful about how 'kick ass' your character is - it is impossible to have a small Terran female out match a Nausicaan male. No Killing Other Characters If you do not have permission to kill or injure another character without permission you are not allowed to do so. Any conflict with this rule will result in a suspension or immediate removal from the group without a chance to return. Also, all posts placed on the forum may be void or removed if this rule is broken. OOC Posting All "out of character" posting will be placed on ST_Deep_Space_9's sister group located HERE. Continued OCC posting on the main forum will result in your account being placed on a posting watch and moderated. Labelling Posts To make backsearches easier, all posts must have labels explaining which characters are involved, where the post is taking place and any other relevant information such as a change in date, backposts or sexual content ratings. If a post takes place in the future please include a reference in the title - Example Title Plots. The most common labelling looks like this: POSTING: Character A/Character B PLACE: San Francisco, Earth NOTES: Year 2407; Sexual Content No Pedophilia Posts depicting pedophilia in any way will not be tolerated. Any instance of this being placed on the forum will result in an immediate ban and removal from the group. Please keep in mind that the definition of pedophilia will differ by species. For example, Ocampans only live until about 9 years old, but at three they are adults - this is important to keep in mind. Because instances of this do occur in real life, references to experiences in the past are acceptable (ie. Character A explaining to a friend about a horrible experience in their past which may have shaped their personality - drug user). Staying In Character Forming a character is important for forming a certain predictability. Staying IC and not changing them to suit your own whims or outcomes is a must. Sometimes there are ideas we have but without some super imagination and creativity they're not all possible. If you have a character who never lies, you cannot just have them start to lie whenever you would like. If you have a character who hates a certain species do not have them get into a relationship with said species. This is an important aspect to keep characters unique. Have Fun This group is all about making writing and Star Trek fun for you. Everyone likes different things, however and learning to compromise and be understanding is important. Some people like drama, some romance/erotica, others big battles and the rest just being nerds. Having an open mind is essential to not taking character behaviour too personally. LOA's ST_Deep_Space_9 is a VERY active group. The moderators have, therefore, taken precautions to ensure plots, characters and authors are not left up in the air by those who are unable to remain consistently active. Any author is permitted an LOA up to three months - any longer and they will be removed and free to reapply when in a better position to post. Any planned absence longer than three days requires the posting of an LOA on the sister group located HERE. After four days, your absences begin to count against you if you have not posted on FNS or alerted a moderator of your concerns. Once you hit 30 days of unexplained absences you will be removed from the group and free to rejoin when in a better position to post. This may happen three times before you will no longer have your application renewed. Removal from Group If you are forcibly removed from the group by a moderator all characters you possess will be confiscated by the group. This does not mean we're free to steal your ideas, simply that their fate in ST_Deep_Space_9 will be determined by remaining members - we would not plagiarize. If, however, you leave on your own terms, it is your responsibility to delegate the fate of your characters before removal, otherwise remaining members will have final say. New Members Probation All new members are placed on a 14 day probationary period to assess their participation levels, writing ability and integration into the group. Applicants may be rejected without cause between the date they joined and the end of the 14 day period - however explanations are usually given. At the end of the 14 day period a decision will be made as to whether this is the group for you. Once accepted into the group, new members have one month to keep up participation. If they fail to post once in the first two weeks or participation dwindles, members may be removed without cause within the one month period. Group Responsibilities All new members must begin with at least two characters to encourage more participation with various authors and plot bases. In general, it is recommended to have one female and one male (but this is only a recommendation). Also, it has been noted that officers have better chances of being included in plots and posts. One post is required in the first two weeks of membership into the group. Once a new member joins, they are responsible for completing the character information file so a wiki page can be constructed. A picture of the character must also be submitted and all the correct information in the database and files to be entered. New members must always add all existing members ID's to their Yahoo! Messenger, apply to join the sister group and agree to the terms/conditions of the rated group information and rules. Failure to do so may result in a probationary removal. Rated Group Disclaimer Recalling the group rules regarding rated sexual content it is important that ST_Deep_Space_9 moderators are clear about the content and intentions of this group. While this is a rated group it is NOT a smut group. Less than 3% of posts are sexual in nature and a focus is more on story, character development and the Star Trek Universe. While sexual content is permitted, one is asked to keep the majority of posts with actual content - too much erotica changes the balance. If erotica and romance is what you're looking for, perhaps another group is better for you. With that said, there IS sexual content and while some may not like it, all posts will be clearly labelled for authors to avoid if they desire. Any important information contained in the post is explained in the weekly summaries provided on FNS. As for disturbing content, this group in no way endorses rape, torture, or incest, however they are (unfortunately) circumstances that occur in real life. In an attempt to be realistic, scenarios are permitted - just hopefully in moderation. Excessive use of these things by any one member will result in their posts being places on probation - aka monitored by the moderators. As described before, pedophilia is not allowed AT ALL. Though the definition changes from species to species, authors need to keep this in mind before posting. Any graphic representation will result in removal of the post and the author from the game. References of an instance are allowed if it has occurred in a characters history. Please keep in mind the rating system when posting. Category:Group Information and Lists Category:Non-Character Information